"I want volunteers from First Church who will pledge themselves, earnestly and honestly, for an entire year, not to do anything without first asking the question, What Would Jesus Do?" A minister's challenge, spurred by a mysterious stranger's impassioned plea, is answered by an heiress, a newspaper editor, a college president, and the local beauty queen. Their stories form the inspirational novel that popularized the expression, What Would Jesus Do? Author Charles M. Sheldon, a Congregational minister, preached popular sermons that focused on Christ's example. His philosophy derived from the Social Gospel movement within Protestantism, a crusade of the late nineteenth century that applied Christian ethics to problems such as injustice, crime, poverty, and other social issues. Originally published in 1897, this classic continues to speak to modern readers with its thought-provoking explorations of what it really means to be a Christian.